Tongue tension is the root of so many problems

There's one thing I tend to work on at some point with all of my clients: the tongue. For its size, the tongue is one of the strongest muscles in the body, and it's always working. Did you know that even when you're asleep, the tongue is pushing saliva down the throat? When it comes to singing, the tongue can have a life of its own. If you are struggling with high notes, long notes, vocal fatigue, range and register problems, difficulty belting, mixing, chest voice, head voice - ALL the things - I would bet tension in your tongue has something to do with it.

The tongue can sit too high or too far back. It can pull itself back even when it has started in a good place. It takes a lot of time and practice to tame the beast.

How do I know if my tongue is in the right place?

To be honest, this is where you need a good teacher to see and show you. But for simplicity, here is where your tongue should be for each vowel (first the Italian vowel and then how it sounds in English!):

• 'i' or 'ee' - the sides of the tongue should be touching the top level of teeth and the tip of the tongue should be touching the bottom front teeth.

• 'e' or 'eh' - the mouth is more open here so the tip of the tongue is again behind the bottom front teeth and the sides are touching the bottom level of teeth.

• 'o' - very similar to 'e' but your lips are shaped slightly differently

• 'a' or 'aah' - the back of the tongue is further down and the tip is behind the front teeth.

• 'u' or 'ooh' - the sides of the tongue are in the middle of the mouth, tip is behind front teeth.

(You can see a theme about the tip of the tongue!)

How can I tame my tongue?

Try these exercises to free up the tension as a first port of call:

• Stretch the tongue. This can be sticking it out the front and sides, it can be rolling it around the mouth, it can literally be holding it and pulling it out. You'll really notice the difference after a pull!

• Tongue raspberry. If you find this difficult, you probably have a tense tongue! Do persevere, it will get better. Keep coming back to the exercise every few days. Use arpeggios, scales and sirens in the whole of your range. Even use the melodies of your songs.

• Exercises with l, n, d, k, g whilst keeping the mouth and jaw still. This creates independence between the tongue and the jaw.

• Sing with your tongue out. This can be on a hum, or singing the words with your tongue out (obviously don't worry about diction here!)

• Sing with your tongue pushing against the bottom front teeth. Giving another job to your tongue will keep it from squirming backwards and upwards.

Here are some videos with some of these tricks in so you can see what I'm writing about!